The People’s Republic of China, founded in 1949, is a socialist republic with over 1.3 billion people, approximately one-fifth of the world’s population. The capital of the People's Republic of China is Beijing.
The Official Name of China
In Chinese, the official name of China is (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó). In daily life, people usually use the shorter form Zhong Guo (“middle kingdom” literally) directly. Internationally, the official name of China is People’s Republic of China, abbreviated as PRC.
On October 1, 1949, the People’s Republic of China was formally established, with its national capital in Beijing. Chairman Mao Zedong declared that “the Chinese people have stood up”. At that time, the Chinese people were defined as a coalition of four social classes—the workers, the farmers, the petite bourgeoisie, and the national- capitalists. The four classes are to be led by the Communist Party of China (CPC). Then the CPC claimed a membership of 4.5 million, of which members of farmer origin accounted for nearly 90 percent.
The National Day: A Celebration of the Nation
The National Day of the People’s Republic of China is a public holiday in China to celebrate the founding of the PRC and is celebrated annually on October 1.
On October 1, 1949, the founding ceremony of the PRC was held in Tian’anmen Square. Chairman Mao Zedong announced the formal establishment of the People’s Republic of China.
The National Day of China is a symbol of the country, reflecting its state system and regime as well as the cohesion of the country and nation. At the same time, the large-scale celebrations on the National Day are also the concrete manifestation of the mobilization and appeal of the government. The national celebration on the day has several basic characteristics—showing national strength and enhancing national confidence, embodying cohesive force and exerting public appeal.
Now the National Day is celebrated throughout China’s mainland, Hong Kong, and Macao with a variety of government-organized festivities, including fireworks and concerts, as well as sports events and cultural events. Companies hang lanterns to celebrate the special day and many people choose to travel. The holiday is also celebrated by many overseas Chinese.
For some important years, there may be magnificent National Day Parade organized by the Chinese government.
The National Flag: A Symbol of Unity and Revolution
Appearance of the Flag
The flag of the People’s Republic of China has a very distinctive appearance. The national flag is the symbol of the People’s Republic of China and it is the five-star red flag. It has a bright red base with five golden stars adorning it on the upper left side corner. The red color of the flag is the symbol of the revolution. In the upper-left corner of the flag there are five-pointed yellow stars, of which the big one represents the Communist Party of China and the four small ones represent the people of four groups of the country. The design of four small stars in a semicircle surrounding a big one signifies the close unity of the Chinese people under the leadership of the CPC. With regard to the shape of the stars, note that each of the four small stars has a point that lines up with the center of the big star, which represents the worship of the people towards the communist party.
The red color is the symbol of passion. The flag of China features red so prominently because it represents “revolution”; the stars and their relationship to each other represent the unity of the Chinese people under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. The yellow color of the stars symbolizes that the Chinese people are of yellow race. The whole flag means Chinese people can overcome all the difficulties, defeat all the enemies and invaders and succeed in all the revolutions and constructions under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. The national flag of China was officially presented at the Tian’anmen Square on October 1, 1949, the day of the declaration of the founding of the PRC.
The National Emblem and Anthem: Symbols of Sovereignty and Spirit
Shape and Symbolic Meanings
The National Emblem of the People’s Republic of China is the symbol of sovereignty of China. The design of the national emblem was published by the Central People’s Government on September 20, 1950.
It contains the national flag, Tiananmen, the entrance gate to the Forbidden City where Mao declared the foundation of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, and five stars which are encircled by ears of grain and with a gear wheel below.
In the design, the five stars represent the unity of the Chinese people under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. The largest star indicates the Communist Party of China, and the four smaller stars refer to the four social classes, that is, the working class, the farmer, the urban petite bourgeoisie and the national bourgeoisie. The golden gear represents the workers. The wheat represents the farmers. The building of Tian’anmen Square represents the great revolutionary traditions and magnificent national spirits of the Chinese people, and in the meantime, it is the symbol of Beijing—the capital of People’s Republic of China. The colors of the National Flag are red and golden, which shows people’s wish of being fortunate and manifests the magnificence.
The National Anthem
The National Anthem of China, “March of the Volunteers”, written in 1935, honors those who went to the front to fight the Japanese invaders in northeast China in the 1930s. The original song greatly encouraged Chinese soldiers and civilians to join in the war to fight against the invaders. Following the victory of the Communist Party of China in 1949, a committee was set up to decide on a national anthem. There were nearly 7,000 entries, but an early favorite was “March of the Volunteers.” The song was officially adopted as the national anthem.
The anthem is as follows:
Arise, who refuse to be slaves! With our very flesh and blood, Let us build our new Great Wall!
The Peoples of China are in the most critical time, Everybody must roar his defiance.
Arise! Arise! Arise!
Millions of hearts with one mind,
Brave the enemy’s gunfire. March on! Brave the enemy’s gunfire. March on! March on! March on! March on, on!
